Prevent Child Abuse N.D. offers advice

When parents feel like they’re getting frustrated and at risk of losing control with their child, they need to give themselves a time-out, advises Leah Wohlsdorf, executive director of Prevent Child Abuse North Dakota.

“The times when it’s most likely for child abuse to occur is in the infant stages of child development,” Wohlsdorf said.

Parents overwhelmed by an infant who won’t stop crying should never shake the child, as violent shaking can cause severe brain damage or death. Instead, Wohlsdorf advises a “time-out” as a simple solution that requires no training.

“When a parent is feeling frustrated and angry and really to the point where they might lose control, the best thing to do is put the baby down in a safe place, like in the crib with the bars up, and just walk away,” she said. “You give yourself a time-out, basically.”

After calming down, the parent can return and check on the child.

According to the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome, shaken baby syndrome is a term used to describe the signs and symptoms resulting from violent shaking and hitting of the head of an infant or small child. It also may be referred to as abusive head trauma.

Wohlsdorf said shaken baby syndrome is no more common or less common in North Dakota than elsewhere, though it can be more of a problem in rural areas worldwide.

“And definitely, we do have a rural state,” she said.

The reason behind that is when people live farther away from each other, they experience isolation, which can increase stress, she explained. Plus, when there is no one else around, there is no one available to help with a crying baby. In Third World countries, where many people live in extended-family situations, there are more people to take a baby and help out when frustration mounts, Wohlsdorf said.

“When there’s miles between houses, that can escalate the incidents of child abuse,” she said.

The current economic troubles in the world also can increase stress and lead to more incidents of child abuse, she said.

“So that’s something that we’re really keeping an eye on,” she said.

Prevent Child Abuse North Dakota will begin a pilot program in Bismarck and Mandan that will target parents with newborns, called “The Happiest Baby on the Block,” sometime in early 2010, Wohlsdorf said. The program is a direct prevention strategy for shaken baby incidents, she said.

“We’ll really get that under way starting early next year in Bismarck-Mandan, and we’re hoping it will go statewide,” she said.

Staff members at the child abuse prevention office are getting certified to offer the training to the public.

Parents will learn different strategies for soothing infants and curbing crying, Wohlsdorf said.

“It helps the baby to be happier and helps the parent in alleviating frustration,” she said.

Prevent Child Abuse North Dakota also will have DVDs and other materials on the techniques, and will apply for funds to give out CDs with sounds that mimic the sounds in a womb, she said. The office also plans to team up with Missouri Valley Quilters, who will sew swaddling blankets for the parents, who will be taught swaddling techniques, Wohlsdorf said.

For more information about Prevention Child Abuse North Dakota’s programs and resources, call 223-9052 or visit www.pcand.org.

Written by By Jenny Michael, Bismarck Tribune, posted on October 10, 2009, at www.bismarcktribune.com